EMS Week

In 1974, President Gerald Ford authorized EMS Week to celebrate EMS practitioners and the important work they do in our nation's communities. National Emergency Medical Services Week brings together local communities and medical personnel to honor the dedication of those who provide the day-to-day lifesaving services of medicine's frontline. EMS Week is presented by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) in partnership with the National Associations of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT). Together, NAEMT and ACEP lead annual EMS Week activities. These organizations are working to ensure that the important contributions of EMS practitioners in safeguarding the health, safety, and well-being of their communities are fully celebrated and recognized.

EMS Week 2023

Happy EMS week to all of those providing and supporting emergency medical care! Each day of EMS Week has a different theme or area of focus. We will be sharing information throughout the week, and hope you are celebrating with your local community and agency.

EMS Week 2023 Proclamation from US President Joe Biden

EMS Week 2023 Proclamation from Maine Governor Janet Mills (PDF)

Thank you letter from Maine EMS Chair Brent Libby, Director Sam Hurley, and Medical Director Dr. Matt Sholl (PDF)

Thank you video from Gam Wijetunge, Director, National Office of EMS, NHTSA

Thank you video from Susan Bailey, NAEMT President

• Sunday is Health, Wellness, and Resilience Day

Sunday of EMS Week is Health, Wellness, and Resilience Day to promote the health, wellness and resilience of EMS providers and patients. Health, Wellness, and Resilience Day highlights the need to recognize and care for the health and wellness of EMS providers and patients and share ideas on strengthening resilience. It is an opportunity to step back and take care of ourselves through self-care as well as to care for our fellow EMS professionals and the patients who are in our care every day.

Responding with Resilience: Mental Wellness in EMS (Youtube video)

• Monday is Education Day

Monday of EMS Week is Education Day, highlighting public education programs and EMS provider education.  Education Day seeks to highlight community educational programs, as well as the importance of continuing education for EMS practitioners. This is the ideal day to plan a community injury or illness prevention program and a special CE course for your agency. Consider in-person or online community education programs related to the prevention of falls, burns, poisoning or drowning.

Thank you letter from Maine Community College (PDF)

Maine EMS is launching a new virtual reality training opportunity, building off the success of the EMS for Children VR trainings. These new adult scenarios are built specifically to Maine protocols, letting you practice what you would really do in the field. Reach out to MEMS.VR@maine.gov to schedule a training, reserve headsets, and more!

Maine EMS Adult Virtual Reality Training Program Flyer (PDF)

• Tuesday is EMS Safety Day

Tuesday of EMS week is Safety Day! Check out the most recent version of the Maine EMS Safety Newsletter

• Wednesday is EMS for Children Day

Happy EMS week! Today is #EMSForChildrenDay ! Join Maine EMS in thanking all of the EMS providers in Maine and nationwide for answering 2.7 million calls for pediatric patients in 2022 and watch this EMSC Thank You video.

• Thursday is Save-A-Life Day

AED access

Happy EMS week! Thursday is Save A Life day, and one way you can help is to register the location of publicly accessible AEDs. Watch the video on the link below, download the app, and you can enter the information about the AED, and it will be sent to Maine EMS, reviewed and then pushed out to all PSAPs statewide. You do not need to do this for ambulances/firetrucks/police cars or other non publicly accessible AEDs, but all others are strongly encouraged to enter the info and make it available in pulsepoint in cases of cardiac arrest, and use to help save a life! https://www.pulsepoint.org/pulsepoint-aed

Stop the Bleed

Launched as a national public awareness campaign by the White House in 2015, the Stop the Bleed campaign seeks to train more of the public to provide immediate care in the event of mass-causality situations. As the result, actions led by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma, the Stop the Bleed campaign seeks to bring a greater understanding on the initial steps in bleeding control. After an extensive study of tourniquet use by the U.S. military in the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, the benefits were clearly shown. Follow-up studies in 2014 showed similar benefits in the civilian population and additional actions such as direct pressure techniques and wound packing provided an arsenal of treatments that could be safely implemented by non-medically trained individuals.

• Friday is EMS Recognition Day

Letter to EMS Community - 2023 EMS Awards (PDF)